Falun Gong

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a Chinese Buddhist new religious movement which was founded in 1992 by Li Hongzhi. The faith's sacred is energy and force, and its sacred text is the Zhuan Falun. The faith's followers have a spiritual energy faith tradition in which they seek to come to a place of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance, with the place of synchronization being the place of happiness. Members of Falun Gong have five spiritual/moral exercises which bring them to the place of inner peace, and these exercises are known as qigong. It seeks to develop wellness through physical and spiritual exercises, and it was said to have proven health benefits. The faith was more of a movement than a religion in China, and Li withdrew his faith from the list of religions, as the list did not include faith traditions with a spiritual component, including only philosophies. Li left China for New York City in 1996, before the Chinese government began a campaign of repression against Falun Gong in 1999, which became a threat due to its large following of 100 million members, its independence from the state, and its spiritual teachings. That same year, the Chinese government declared Falun Gong a heretical organization, and thousands of members committed suicide, with many self-immolating in Tiananmen Square in 2001.